A century-old fermented tofu business that imported bean curds from mainland China while saying its products were local has raised concerns about labelling products as Hong Kong made, but the food industry said officials should strengthen checks instead of tightening the laws.
Liu Ma Kee, a now-closed 119-year-old producer of fermented tofu, admitted to importing the fermented bean curds from the mainland for 30 years while only being involved in post-processing, despite marketing themselves as locally produced.
Its bean curd was sold in jars, with labels showing it was a Hong Kong brand but not the place of origin.
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While legislation does not mandate food products to be labelled with their countries of origin, experts said falsely claiming a product was locally produced could violate laws.
Thomas Ng Wing-yan, chairman of the Hong Kong Food Council, told the Post that it was more important to step up checks than tighten the law.
“The current laws are sufficient, but authorities can step up on checks and increase sampling to make sure businesses are not going against regulations,” he said.
Ng said the controversy had educated consumers about the strict standards associated with the “Made in Hong Kong” mark, referring to the Hong Kong Brand Development Council’s scheme, which allows businesses holding a valid Certificate of Hong Kong Origin to label their products with a specific logo.
“‘Made in Hong Kong’ is definitely an acclaimed brand. It is a brand that, over the years, the food businesses in Hong Kong have painfully cultivated to build its good reputation,” he said.
Businesses that held the “Made in Hong Kong” mark have their local factories licensed by food safety authorities and follow extremely strict regulations, with more than 75 per cent of their manufacturing line based in Hong Kong, he added.
While Ng said he did not think the Liu Ma Kee incident would damage the reputation of the “Made in Hong Kong” brand, he said products must meet its strict requirements if they claim to be locally made.
According to standards laid out by the Trade and Industry Department, fermented tofu, which is classified under seasoning sauces, the grinding, cooking, fermentation and drying of the product must be completed locally to be branded as “locally produced”.
“Goods that are entirely produced locally in Hong Kong must be natural products of Hong Kong (completely grown or extracted in Hong Kong) or manufactured in Hong Kong using local raw materials.
“For finished products involving materials and processing from multiple locations, they must be manufactured in Hong Kong through a process that permanently and substantially changes the shape, nature, structure or function of the basic production materials used.”
Current Hong Kong laws do not require pre-packaged food to label their country of origin. But under the Trade Description Ordinance, all descriptions, including the place of origin, manufacture, production, processing or renovation must be accurate.
Australia has strict definitions for food “grown”, “produced” and “made” locally, with products required to carry a standard kangaroo logo and information about the proportion of home-grown ingredients.
Labels on food products in Singapore, mainland China and Taiwan must show the country of origin.
The Commerce and Economic Development Bureau on Tuesday noted that the ordinance also prohibited traders from subjecting consumers to specified unfair trade practices, including false descriptions.
It said authorities would continue to review the trend of unfair trade practices to formulate timely measures to protect consumers’ rights.
Lawyer Vitis Leung Wing-hang said products labelled “Made in Hong Kong” faced stricter regulation than those “produced in Hong Kong”
“Products that undergo simple processing can claim to be ‘produced in Hong Kong’ without any certificates,” he said. “‘Made in Hong Kong’ products have to be certified by authorities and businesses have to verify that the product originated in Hong Kong.”
Albert So Man-kit, another lawyer, said labelling of the country of origin was necessary and important for exported Hong Kong products, but not for those sold locally.
Food safety laws for locally produced products only required businesses to list out ingredients and allergens, he said, while descriptions must be accurate according to Food and Drugs Regulations, subsidiary legislation under the Public Health Ordinance.
More from South China Morning Post:
- The crumbling of a fermented tofu brand: how Liu Ma Kee became a fallen Hong Kong icon
- Just 1 out of 4 Hong Kong fermented tofu makers goes on record to say product is all local
- Row over Liu Ma Kee’s use of imported bean curd exposes legal loophole: Hong Kong experts
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